Is ZUBAAN trying to do a JUGNI? I guess so. Because at the core of the movie is it's magical music and the search for soul, but what we get at the surface is a plot contrived and a bit convoluted. I know I'm a bit harsh in judging Mozez Singh's first-time directorial venture. But this is exactly what it is, a wasted opportunity to hit the high notes and ring in the applause.

Mozez had the script, brilliant music and super, way beyond performances, but he spoils the broth by trying to add too many ingredients all in one go. All through the first half, even though the plot is going all over, I try to stay interested mainly because the two characters of Dilsher (Vicky Kaushal) and Gurcharan Sikand (Manish Chaudhary) have me invested with their intensity and portrayal of their characters. Both are a study in brilliance. If only the clarity in the plot was taken care of, Mozez would have had a scorcher on his hand.

After MASAAN, Vicky Kaushal stamps his class yet again; what a marvelous actor he is! As the stammering lad from Gurdsapur, who comes to Delhi in search of his guru, Gurcharan [also called the Lion of Punjab for his rise to fame], Vicky is class. There is clarity in every expression of his. However, he will have to take care of his excessive pink lipstick topped with dollops of lip-gloss. That is the only flaw in his performance!

Manish, on the other hand, is like a character cut out of glass: explicit, elaborate and a study in expression. Giving them company is Meghana Malik and Raaghav Chanana who plays Surya, Gurcharan's son. While it takes time for Meghana's character to impact you (she socks you with a killer punch towards the end), Raaghav oscillates between good and average and gives you a one-dimensional feel to his portrayal of the son who does not get the love of his father. Throwing her hat in the ring is Sarah Jane Dias. However, her character, Amira, is the one mainly responsible for the taking away the sting from the plot which I mentioned earlier.

Towards the end, there's confusion in your mind as a viewer as Dilsher, who had gone to Delhi to pursue his dreams, after doing a study on Gurcharan Singh, comes back to Gurdaspur, to a not so happy welcome. He has a change of heart, and realizes that what he was pursuing was not his dream. His dream was to sing, just like he did with his father as a young lad in the Gurdwara.

The Music is the other hero of this film. We saw brilliant music in JUGNI in January. This one, I dare say, goes an octave higher. The picturisation and the dynamics that go with making a brilliant song visually wow is seen in Sun Le Na Koi Pukar; this song will take your breath away.